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Thread: Winstar Casino in Thackerville, OK - 12/31/16

  1. #1
    Administrator sodascouts's Avatar
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    Default Winstar Casino in Thackerville, OK - 12/31/16

    Don put on a great show to finish off 2016. Needless to say this year has been horrible, but I'm glad I was able to end it at a show.

    He was much more "off script" than I've seen him before. He'd begin to tell a rehearsed story, then go off on a tangent or bring up something else entirely (sometimes inspired by people yelling stuff at him like "YOU DA MAN", sometimes inspired by real life events). I really loved that; it made it seem more intimate.

    His voice failed him a time or two, but the upside of that was that he just tried that much harder, throwing himself into it. Most of the time, he sounded great. I noticed a couple times he was shaking a bit (very slight - only someone who was watching him like a hawk would notice). I wondered if he were a bit under the weather; ETG thought he might just be emotional. (By the way, shout out to ETG and her family - great meeting you guys!)

    He was wearing his gray vest and white top, looking very smart. The background singers were all dressed in black and wearing dramatic makeup. They definitely looked a lot older than they did the last time I saw them, when they were still sporting baby doll dresses. I think it's a good thing.

    His massive band included all the regulars and then some! There seemed to be some audio foibles at the beginning - probably the fault of the venue - but as the show progressed, that stopped happening.

    The crowd was good in that they were listening and there weren't a lot of drunk/high people making a racket as I had feared; however, when it came to getting up and dancing at the end, forget it! I tried a few times but gave up after a verse or two when no one around me joined me.

    The setlist was a bit shorter than usual, but not by much. He played for about two and a half hours. Compared to recent shows, we didn't get "It Don't Matter to the Sun," "I Don't Want to Hear Any More," and "Train in the Distance." (Apparently Don forgot for a moment he wasn't going to do all of these, because he said "We're going to do a few acoustic songs now" and then only did one, lol.) However, we DID get "The Last Worthless Evening" which had been cut from other shows.

    Happy surprise: I really dislike "Shangri-La" on the album, but seeing it live... I enjoyed it.

    Biggest disappointment: No "Funky New Year." I can't say I'm surprised, but I had allowed myself to get my hopes up. Oh well.

    Highlights: The powerful opening song "Seven Bridges Road"; the interesting history and the dramatic presentation of "The Last Resort" (although the song itself isn't a favorite): his nailing of the "Witchy Woman" vocals; the passionate deliveries of "Best of My Love", "The End of the Innocence", and "Heart of the Matter" (although honestly I could list many more songs here - as I said earlier, he was really throwing himself into it).

    He alluded to Glenn a few times, sometimes subtly (about how it's been a hard year, and after NYM about how more than ever he feels the truth of that song), and sometimes by name when introducing a co-write like BOML or "Desperado." Glenn's name brought a huge round of applause, of course.

    Almost all of his introductions contained a funny moment and some were funny throughout. Don has great comedic timing. The two that made me laugh the most:

    - As I referred to earlier, some guy yelled out "YOU DA MAN" and then Don replied with "No, YOU the man; we are the men." He then riffed off of this for a couple minutes, making jokes like "He comes to every show" and ending with, "Stay thirsty, my friend." SO. FUNNY.

    - When introducing "That Old Flame," he was talking about people finding you from your past and he joked about how sometimes you might found out that you owe people money... or find out you have a baby (LOL).

    Overall, it was a very special experience and I'm so glad I went.

    Always in our hearts, Never forgotten

  2. #2
    Stuck on the Border shunlvswx's Avatar
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    Default Re: Winstar Casino in Thackerville, OK

    Ohh. Last Worthless Evening. Now that's the song I want to hear. I really hope he puts that song in the setlist in the Texas shows. I know his setlist is probably going to be the same, but it would be strange if he didn't throw Talking to the Moon in there.

    I'm glad you had fun, Soda. My time can't get here any faster. I put in my day off and I'm ready to go. I'm counting down.

  3. #3
    Stuck on the Border LuvTim's Avatar
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    Default Re: Winstar Casino in Thackerville, OK

    Soda, thank you, it sounds like it was great fun! So happy for you and ETG that you got to attend.

    Shun, I know you're counting the minutes! I hope he does Last Worthless Evening for you, too.


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    Stuck on the Border buffyfan145's Avatar
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    Default Re: Winstar Casino in Thackerville, OK

    So glad you had a great time Soda!!! Those jokes sound hilarious and love he did "The Last Worthless Evening".
    ~*Amanda*~
    "So often times it happens that we live our lives in chains and we never even know we have the key."

  5. #5
    Stuck on the Border shunlvswx's Avatar
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    Default Re: Winstar Casino in Thackerville, OK

    IF I remembered, he hasn't done Last Worthless Evening since 2015 when he first started the Cass County tour. I'm crossing my fingers that he doesn't drop it.

  6. #6
    Stuck on the Border Delilah's Avatar
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    Default Re: Winstar Casino in Thackerville, OK

    Thank you for the nice review. Although I try not to let myself get excited too far ahead of time, now I am starting to get psyched about seeing him in Sugarland in two weeks!



    ETA: tracy123, I'm sorry to hear you didn't have best time. Even if you have personal issues with Don H, hopefully you at least enjoyed his music.

  7. #7
    Border Troubadour L101's Avatar
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    Default Re: Winstar Casino in Thackerville, OK

    Soda, sounds like you had a great night and I'm so glad you made it to see Don ! He never disappoints

    I noticed him shaking a bit before when he was doing his tribute to Billy Joel at the KCH - hopefully it is just his emotions showing which he hid by being really funny - after all he is Da Man

    Looking forward to hearing about the rest of his shows even if I can't make it to any of them
    "The more I know, the less I understand...."

    Don't crack up, bend your brain, see both sides, throw off your mental chains"

  8. #8
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    Default Re: Winstar Casino in Thackerville, OK

    As I referred to earlier, some guy yelled out "YOU DA MAN" and then Don replied with "No, YOU the man; we are the men."

    Lots of Irish people have trouble with their 'th's' which drives me mad. I'd love to refer them to Don for elocution lessons! He's so quick witted.

    Thanks for the review, Soda. If Don suffers from a bad back (which I believe he does) it could be a damaged nerve making him shake - I have the same problem with my neck.

    ....anyway to echo L101 it's great reading the reviews even if we can't see him ourselves....but don't lose faith L101 we'll keep on believing
    ...Well it sure makes you wonder the things that some people will say. They can see black and white but they don't seem to notice the grey...

  9. #9
    Border Desperado jms18222's Avatar
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    Default Re: Winstar Casino in Thackerville, OK

    Great write up Soda. Hopefully he will tour the northeast again this summer but I am not counting on it. I was fortunate enough to see him twice last year. Soda, did he have a goatee or fresh shaved? I agree with you about his back-up singers ditching the babydoll dresses, smart move. If you have Instagram there are gifs of the ladies jumping on a beanbag chair in Don's library at the NYE party none of us were invited to.
    Last edited by jms18222; 01-02-2017 at 05:55 PM.

  10. #10
    Administrator sodascouts's Avatar
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    Default Re: Winstar Casino in Thackerville, OK

    He was clean-shaven. I personally like the goatee, but he was certainly handsome without it.

    Always in our hearts, Never forgotten

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